Drug Compaines Should Not Be Allowed To Advertise Prescription Drugs

I have yet to hear anybody give a rational defense or even a good explanation for why drug makers are allowed to advertise their products on television in the U.S. All of us have seen the drug companies’ television commercials promoting prescription drugs. We see folks in the ads enjoying life, having taken a company’s drug, “proving” that this latest “miracle drug” has done its work. And each ad ends with what advertisers refer to as the “call to action,” a directive to the viewer to “ask your doctor” for this drug. Even in the best of cases, it may not be the healthiest nor safest idea to have patients going to doctors asking for specific drugs. I don’t believe the old saying that “the customer is always right,” applies when it comes to doctors prescribing drugs for their patients. These are decisions that doctors must make. When the patient is calling the shots, it’s sort of like the tail wagging the dog!

When it comes to prescription medicine, there may be something more effective, or less costly on the market. But the drug companies spend all that money on advertising for a reason and I don’t believe there is any doubt as to what that reason is. The commercials all show healthy, active people who are really enjoying life to the fullest. Unfortunately, we don’t really hear much on the slick commercials about potentially harmful results – dangers that sometimes far outweigh any benefits we may get from the drug. We just don’t get past the visuals in the ad. The discussion of side effects is sparse and done in a manner so that the viewer really doesn’t get that message.